Aaron Fotheringham
| File:Aaron Fotheringham.jpg | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Full name | Aaron James Fotheringham |
| Nickname(s) | Wheelz |
| Born | November 8, 1991 Las Vegas, Nevada |
| Website | Aaron's Website |
| Sport | |
| Sport | WCMX |
| Achievements and titles | |
| National finals | 2005 Vegas AmJam BMX |
Aaron Fotheringham (born November 8, 1991 in Las Vegas, Nevada) is an extreme wheelchair athlete who performs tricks adapted from skateboarding and BMX.
Fotheringham has spina bifida; he has used a wheelchair since the age of three and although he used crutches early on, he has been a wheelchair user full-time since the age of eight. He would watch his brother riding his BMX at the skate park, and one day his brother told him that he should try riding his chair in the park. Aaron later noted that “I did, and I was hooked”.[1]
Fotheringham uses a customized WCMX wheelchair designed by Box Wheelchairs, which is both lightweight and features four-wheel suspension. This enables him to perform the same sorts of tricks that skateboarders and BMXers can do, as the suspension cushions his landings. Fotheringham has worked with Box Designs Wheelchairs to help refine the design in real-world situations, resulting in a custom-made chair that is in his words "pretty much indestructible".[1]
He competes in the Vegas Am Jam series in skate park competitions, usually against BMX riders. He placed fourth in the intermediate BMX division in a competition held at Sunny Springs Skate Park on August 26, 2006.[2]
Fotheringham advises others attempting to try these tricks to wear a helmet; he has suffered several injuries performing these tricks, including a broken elbow. He tries out new tricks by performing them first into a foam pit. Then he graduates to a ‘resi’, a harder plastic sheet over the cushions, before attempting the new trick on a regular skateboard ramp.[3]
When asked about having to practice, Fotheringham responded "I don’t think of it as practice, I think of it as a fun way to live my life".[3]
Aaron has also performed his backflip on the nitro circus live tour over a 50 foot megaramp and jumped the ramp going straight.[4]
In 2008 he appeared in an episode of the reality series 'Secret Millionaire' and received a donation of US$20,000 from Century Software founder Gregory Haerr.[5] In 2009, Fotheringham worked as a stunt double for Kevin McHale's character, Artie Abrams, in Glee.
Sports activity
Fotheringham calls his activity "WCMX". He is the first person to successfully perform a backflip[6] in a wheelchair at the age of 14, and a double backflip[7] at the age of 18. He performs many other tricks in his wheelchair including 180 degree 'aerials', one-wheeled spins and rail grinds.[8] He plans to fuse the back flip with the 180 aerial into what is known as a ‘flair'.
In 2010 Aaron joined the Nitro Circus Live tour, an action sports road show that tours Australia, New Zealand, Europe and the United States. On the tour Aaron performed on a fifty-foot ramp-to-ramp jump doing backflips, double backflip attempts and on February 9, 2011 in New Zealand, the world's first wheelchair frontflip.[8]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ [1][dead link]
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 http://www.newdisability.com/interviewaaron.htm
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
